Auditors praise Sarastoa County's purchasing reforms

Monday

Jan 28, 2013 at 10:35 PM

Some of the same auditors who once blasted Sarasota County's purchasing practices as ripe for abuse are now praising reforms made over the last year.

A series of reports recommended 263 changes to how county workers spend taxpayer money — from greater credit card controls to reforms in how lucrative government contracts are awarded — after numerous abuses came to light in 2011.

In a follow-up review that will be presented to the County Commission Wednesday, financial experts with the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing say 70 percent of the recommendations from their initial audit, and three other reports, have been adopted.

While noting that some "urgent" problems remain, auditors lauded the county's progress.

In some cases county leaders may have even gone too far in cracking down on employee spending, according to the report.

Among the reforms praised by auditors:

• The county now has a Procurement Oversight Committee that meets weekly to work on improving the system.

• There is much stronger oversight of "P-Cards" — the county's internal credit card system — including a new administrator who monitors the program for abuses.

• Ethical standards and training have been overhauled. The county's system, which incorporates features like a fraud hotline and conflict-of-interest forms, is now recognized as a model.

The purchasing scandal led to the termination or forced retirement of more than a dozen top county officials, including former County Administrator Jim Ley.

Cleaning up the problems was considered a top priority for current Administrator Randall Reid when he took over the post more than a year ago.

The county is making headway, but problems with the procurement department remain, according to the review.

They include:

• A fragmented computer system that divides purchasing among six software programs, resulting in "tremendous duplication of effort" that should be replaced with "a fully integrated procurement system."

• A slow process for revising the county's procurement code that has not incorporated nationally accepted standards.

• A new "risk averse" culture that is affecting the procurement department's ability to do its job. The report notes that 41 percent fewer people have P-Cards and spending has declined by 52 percent.

Cathy Antunes with the group Citizens for Responsible Government said in an email Monday she was particularly concerned that the county is not following best practices with the procurement code rewrite.

"County culture still needs to change," Antunes said.

One of the outstanding questions is whether the county should favor local businesses that apply for contracts.

The initial audit called for ending "local preference" because it does not award contracts to the lowest bidder and can result in less qualified contractors.

But commissioners seem inclined to keep some type of local preference system, with revisions.

"We want to strike that balance and give the opportunity for our local vendors to be able to get some of these contracts," said Commissioner Christine Robinson, who requested the follow-up report. "But at the same time we have to protect the taxpayers' money and get the best bang for our bucks."

Robinson added that she would like to see changes to the P-Card system that maintain the new safeguards while "allowing people who need them to be able to use them where it's logical."

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